Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Write-in Candidate:Jeff Boss (Ind?)

About a month before general elections most county or local governments provide voters with a packet that among other pieces of voter information lists candidates running for President and Vice President. Typically the nominees are organized according to those from the two major political parties (Dems and Repubs) and the two major, non-major political parties (Libertarian and Green). Then there is a second larger group of write-in candidates from less established, up-and-coming parties. This later group tends to consist of candidates from the extreme left or right, or of candidates that see a national campaign as the vehicle most appropriate to achieve some singular policy, such as reinforcing prohibition.

Depending upon the state the candidate comes from an individual might need only a few hundred signatures to get their name on the write-in ballot. Such an achievable task explains the large number of write-in candidates and likely contributes to the absence of media attention paid to these candidates. Contrary to voting theory, it wasn't the purpose of a democratic republic to create a two-party system and as such, running up to the November 6 election DBSF will use this platform to highlight the positions, plans, and interests of some of these less recognized candidates.

Jeff Boss is a write-in candidate from New Jersey. Mr. Boss's platform isn't as policy-specific as other candidates. Aligning him on the political spectrum is challenging as well because he's one of those candidates that focuses on a particular, albeit significant, issue. The background of Mr. Boss's website consists of the flag, a bald eagle and two images--one larger than the other--of the Statue of Liberty all of which suggest deep patriotism. He seems to be a candidate focused largely on a domestic issue. More specifically, he states that he personally witnessed the National Security Agency (NSA) arrange the September 11th attacks on the US. His main evidence for this claim is that he has recorded over 500 people stating that the NSA provided them $20K for their participation in and ensuing silence related to the attack.

Mr. Boss's campaign hones in specifically on the role of NSA in the terrorist attack and he provides no other information on his website with which to judge his platform. He does however include links of allegations of major political figures and government agencies that have plotted to harm him or to undermine his campaign. Also, last April over a period of four days you could have met him on the corner of 17th and K St in Washington, DC for a period of 30 minutes. DBSF's take is that at this stage in the game, Mr. Boss might be best served if he broadened his perspective to more domestic and international issues and paid greater attention to current and prospective events. That being said, for voters interested in a candidate with a zealous commitment to the circumstances of September 11th--and literally no other identified priorities--then Mr. Boss deserves consideration.